Araha Beach

One day Rodney and I were going to check out this little shopping area and discovered there was a beach right across the street, so we went to take a peek and snap a few shots...

The entrance to the beach/park

 The entrance

 The view from the top of the stairs over the beach-side amphitheater

 A nice rock outcropping

 We both thought this was a CUTE water fountain!!

Six months already?!?!?!?

I am truly in shock to realize it has been six months since we said good-bye to San Diego!! Many miles have been covered and adventures already experienced since we bade our good-byes to....

....our Amphib Base Chapel family....

...our North Island Chapel family...

....my Chick-fil-A kids....

...Rodney's office crew...

...and the Padres....

I honestly cannot believe its been that long already!! If you were part of our San Diego life, know we will always hold you and the part you played near and dear to our hearts, even as we wander into new adventures :)

Peace Prayer Park

By the time we arrived at our final stop, we only had a little over an hour to cover lots of ground and we knew we would not be able to cover it all. This is a place we will have to revisit on our own and give ourselves at least 3-4 hours to visit the museum, all the memorials, and the name walls that show the names of all lives lost on-island during the war. We only had time to see a few of the memorials.

Here are a few highlights...

The entrance to the Army HQ

Looking up to Reimei Monument

Reimei Monument

I do believe he's scary enough to keep the evil spirits away!

Another burial monument

We will be revisiting this place and will post more pictures!!

Japanese Naval Underground Headquarters

Just a few pictures to give you an idea of what it was like...

Hanging on the wall are streams of paper cranes which are the Japanese symbol of honor and loyalty.

Down the stairs to the tunnels

It was a warm day, so before loading the bus to our last stop, I grabbed a drink from one of the vending machines.

While at a stoplight, Rodney snapped these...

click to enlarge this one to see the variety of creatures!!

We thought this looks like a cousin of the Travelocity gnome is getting his picture taken with Buddha!!

And then on to our last stop, Peace Prayer Park...

Battle of Okinawa Museum

Before our lunch stop, we made a visit to the battle museum on Kinser.

Believe it or not, the guns in the next two pictures have been dug up in the last couple of years!! Numerous amounts of war "leftovers" are found on the island every year....still!!

This one was discovered just last fall on one of the bases by some Japanese contractors.

This canteen has 70 some holes in it....and it would have been on the soldier when it was shot up.

I found this quote to paint quite a mental picture.

They have a few pieces, minus the firing mechanisms, that you can explore hands-on. They were heavy! I couldn't imagine having to haul them around every where I went.

Just call him "Rambo"

After our brief visit here, we were off to lunch, then to the Japanese Naval Underground Headquarters...

Kakazu Ridge

One of the first tours we wanted to do on-island was the Battle of Okinawa Sites Tour. We covered a lot of ground that day with more to see than we truly had time for, but now we know what we for sure want to go back to see. This tour consisted of Kakazu Ridge, the battle museum on Kinser, Japanese Naval Underground Headquarters, and ended at the Peace Prayer Park.

I'm hoping you can click on some of these pictures to enlarge them to read the signs.

Some of the shell marks in this piece of wall are bigger than a grown man's fist. 

Our tour guide (sitting on the railing) has more history knowledge in his little pinkie than probably most of us have in our whole bodies!! It was an awesome history lesson through the day of, not just the battle for Okinawa, but the war itself!!

Views from inside the sphere (above) of the ground the troops covered in trying to take the ridge.

Looking through the wooden gate (above) into the old bunker

The Japanese still honor those who lost their lives during that battle

I thought these were some sweet picture opportunities~

Since it is a park, it is enjoyed by young children on a walk...

...enjoying the cherry blossoms...

...and the grassy areas are great places for a game of soccer :)

We then proceeded to Camp Kinser to see the Battle of Okinawa Museum...